To The Core

The Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 570 presents a stark contrast in capabilities when analyzing "To The Core" benchmark data. The processor is a modern 20-core, 28-thread powerhouse built on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. Its substantial L3 cache of 33 MB shared across the cores and support for both DDR4 and DDR5 memory position it as a high-end CPU. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 35,443 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 5,003 in single-core, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. This indicates that the processor has far more computational headroom than a typical idle game would ever require, meaning its role in the measured frame rates is likely that of a silent partner, never becoming the primary constraint on performance.

The GPU, conversely, is an older Polaris 20 chip from the GCN 4.0 architecture, released in 2017. It features 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock is 1168 MHz with a boost clock of 1244 MHz. The graphics card's raw compute is rated at 5.095 TFLOPS for FP32 operations. While the CPU sits at the 94th percentile against all other processors, the RX 570 sits at the 74th percentile against all GPUs in the database. This disparity is the core finding of this analysis: the GPU is the definitive limiting factor in this configuration, and the benchmark results reflect that bottleneck clearly.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor from the Core 14th Gen series. It operates on the Intel Socket 1700 platform and is built on a 10 nm process node. With a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, the CPU can rapidly shift between power efficiency and high-performance states. The 33 MB of shared L3 cache is a significant pool of fast memory for active workloads. The processor's benchmark scores show its dominance: a Geekbench multi-core score of 16,571 and a single-core score of 2,711. In the Passmark suite, it achieves a multi-thread score of 41,765 and a single-thread score of 4,261.

In the context of "To The Core," an idle game, the CPU's role is minimal. The measured FPS data shows that even at the highest settings and resolutions, the frame rates are far below what this CPU could theoretically support. For instance, at 1080p Ultra, the average FPS is 75.9, a number that is more indicative of a GPU limit than a CPU one. The processor's percentile rank of 94 and its proximity to rivals like the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X, which is only 0.6% faster in average benchmark score, suggest it is a top-tier part. However, the game's data shows no scenario where the CPU is the bottleneck, as even the lowest FPS measurements are well within the CPU's capability to feed the GPU.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is the clear performance arbiter in this pairing. Its 4 GB of GDDR5 memory and 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth are modest by modern standards. The GPU's clock speeds are fixed at 1168 MHz base and 1244 MHz boost, and it features 2048 shading units. The graphics card is an end-of-life product, and its benchmark scores reflect its age. For example, it scores 880 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 and 42,752 in Geekbench Vulkan. Its average benchmark score of 30,158 places it in the 74th percentile, which is a far lower standing than the CPU's 94th percentile.

The measured FPS data confirms that the RX 570 is the limiting component. The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 127.8 FPS, but at 4K Low, it drops to 46.4 FPS. This is a classic sign of a GPU that is running out of shading power and memory bandwidth as the pixel count increases. The GPU's nearestRivals in benchmark scores are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, with deltaPct values of 0.2% and 0.2% respectively. This is a curious data point, as those modern cards are in a different performance class, but the average benchmark scores suggest they are statistically similar in this dataset, which may be due to the specific tests performed.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combined score for this specific CPU and GPU configuration in "To The Core" is ranked 1691 out of 1756 tested combos. This places it in the lower 4th percentile of all system pairings tested for this game. This low rank is almost entirely attributable to the GPU. The data shows that while the CPU is a high-end part, the GPU's age and limited VRAM hold the entire system back. The rank of 1691 indicates that there are 1,690 other combinations of hardware that produce better average frame rates in this title.

This ranking is not a reflection of the CPU's capability, but rather proof of the GPU's inability to keep pace. The combo rank should be interpreted as a warning to users that this is a heavily unbalanced configuration. The CPU is capable of supporting a much faster graphics card, but the RX 570 creates a significant bottleneck. The data suggests that even a mid-range modern GPU would likely see a substantial improvement in the combo rank, as the CPU would not be a limiting factor in any scenario.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo can achieve in "To The Core"?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 127.8, which occurs at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How much does the average FPS drop from 1080p to 4K at Ultra settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 75.9 at 1080p Ultra to 27.1 at 4K Ultra, a decrease of 48.8 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck for this system?

A: The GPU is the primary bottleneck. The CPU is ranked in the 94th percentile, while the GPU is in the 74th percentile, and the frame rate scales sharply with resolution, indicating a GPU limit.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested systems for this game?

A: The combo is ranked 1691 out of 1756 tested combinations.

Q: At what resolution and settings does the system achieve its lowest average FPS?

A: The lowest average FPS is 27.1, measured at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings.

Q: How does the CPU's average benchmark score compare to the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700F has an average benchmark score that is 0.6% lower than the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data shows a clear and dramatic scaling pattern across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system averages 127.8 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low, the average FPS falls to 86.5, a drop of 41.3 FPS. At 4K Low, the average FPS plummets to 46.4, representing a 63.7% decrease from the 1080p Low figure. This steep decline is observed across all settings. For High settings, the progression is 91.3 FPS at 1080p, 65.5 FPS at 1440p, and 34.9 FPS at 4K. The Ultra settings show the most severe scaling, going from 75.9 FPS at 1080p to 50.9 FPS at 1440p and finally to 27.1 FPS at 4K.

This scaling behavior is the definitive evidence that the AMD Radeon RX 570 is the limiting component. A CPU bottleneck would show similar FPS regardless of resolution, as the CPU's workload does not change significantly with pixel count. The fact that the FPS drops by more than half from 1080p to 4K in all settings indicates that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are being saturated. The 4 GB VRAM is also likely a contributing factor, as higher resolutions require more memory for frame buffers and textures, potentially causing the GPU to spill over into slower memory access patterns.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured data, the optimal settings for this hardware configuration depend on the user's target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1080p, the Medium preset offers a good balance, with an average FPS of 107.7. This is a significant jump from the High preset's 91.3 FPS, while still providing better graphical quality than Low. The Ultra preset at 1080p yields 75.9 FPS, which may be acceptable for some, but the 31.8 FPS difference between Medium and Ultra is substantial.

For 1440p users, the Low preset is the only option that provides a frame rate above 60 FPS, hitting 86.5 FPS. The Medium preset at 72.7 FPS is also playable, but the High preset drops to 65.5 FPS, which is near the edge of smoothness. At 4K, the data shows that this GPU is not suited for the task. The highest FPS at 4K is 46.4 on Low settings, which is below the 60 FPS threshold that most users consider smooth. Therefore, the recommendation is to use Medium settings at 1080p for the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, or Low settings at 1440p for a higher resolution experience. The Ultra preset should be avoided, as it offers the lowest FPS at every resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The following is the complete measured FPS data for the Intel Core i7-14700F and AMD Radeon RX 570 combination in "To The Core":

1920x1080

• Low: 127.8 FPS
• Medium: 107.7 FPS
• High: 91.3 FPS
• Ultra: 75.9 FPS

2560x1440

• Low: 86.5 FPS
• Medium: 72.7 FPS
• High: 65.5 FPS
• Ultra: 50.9 FPS

3840x2160

• Low: 46.4 FPS
• Medium: 39.3 FPS
• High: 34.9 FPS
• Ultra: 27.1 FPS

The data shows a consistent pattern: a 40-50% reduction in FPS when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and another 40-50% reduction when moving from 1440p to 4K. The gap between Low and Ultra settings also widens slightly at higher resolutions, from a 51.9 FPS difference at 1080p to a 19.3 FPS difference at 4K. This indicates that the GPU is more sensitive to quality settings at lower resolutions where it has more headroom, but at 4K, the pixel fill rate becomes the absolute limit, and even reducing settings to Low cannot bring the frame rate up to a playable level.